Northmor grapplers fall in regional finals

Northmor’s quest to make it to the final eight in the Division III state dual meet wrestling tournament will have to wait another year, as the Knights fell in the regional finals at Oak Harbor to the host team in the regional semifinals and finals on Wednesday.

After easily dispatching of Pleasant by a 57-15 margin, the Knights fell to Oak Harbor by a 34-24 margin in a match that was closely-contested until the Rockets finished with three wins in the final four bouts.

Northmor got out to a fast start in the match, getting a first-period pin by Manny Heilman at 106 pounds. After Oak Harbor won at 113, the Knights got a major decision by Jakob Neer at 120 and a decision by Gavin Ramos at 126 to lead 13-4.

However, the Rockets would claim many of the following matches. Northmor won at 138, when Conan Becker claimed a decision win, and at 170, after Kyle Price pinned his opponent in 30 seconds, but Oak Harbor won at 132, 145, 152 and 160 to pull even with the Knights.

After Price’s win, the Rockets would then claim victory at 182, 195 and 220 before D.J. Christo ended the match with a decision win at 285.

The Knights had no such trouble when they faced Pleasant in the regional semifinals, claiming wins in 11 of 14 weight classes. Aaron Kitts (132), Conor Becker (145), Matthew Ross (152), Tony Martinez (160), Mason Burger (182) and Nathan Price (195) all claimed pins for Northmor; while Heilman and Ramos also got six team points each due to winning by forfeit.

Neer, Conan Becker and Ben Singer (170) added wins by decision for the Knights in their 42-point win that brought them back to the regional finals for the third time in five years.

By Rob Hamilton

MCSSports@civitasmedia.com

Rob Hamilton can be reached at 419-946-3010, ext. 1807. Connect with him on Twitter at @SportsMCS

Rob Hamilton can be reached at 419-946-3010, ext. 1807. Connect with him on Twitter at @SportsMCS